Chariot for Women: An Uber exclusive for women

Chariot for Women, an innovating women-only-ride-sharing service app, will be launched in Boston, Massachusetts, on April 9. According to various reports, Chariot for Women has signed up more than 1,000 drivers so far.

Chariot for Women considers itself as a safer option for women in comparison to other ride-sharing companies on the market, especially because all drivers will be women and they will only render service to other women, males under age 13 and transwomen. Plus, Chariot for Women assures that they will not apply surge pricing, even when its fares will be comparable to those of Uber and Lyft.

Chariot for Women aims to offer women a safer ride to their destination. Credit: Chickdriven.com

Contrary to what one might think, the “mastermind” behind this idea isn’t a woman that had a bad experience with an Uber before. It’s actually an erstwhile Uber driver called Michael Pelletz who felt insecure and threatened by a passenger. After that episode, he put himself in the shoes of a woman and that’s how he came up with the idea.

Despite the acceptance that has earned Pelletz and his new company, he might be facing gender discrimination lawsuits because of the female-only policies, said Joseph L Sulman to the Boston Globe. He adds that those lawsuits could be difficult to win.

Pelletz claimed that he’s more than willing to face legal challenges.

Concern about women’s safety is the defense against possible lawsuits

The founder told TechCrunch that Chariot for Women intends to show there’s no equity in safety in the industry.

“We hope to go to the US Supreme Court to say that if there’s safety involved, there’s nothing wrong with providing a service for women,” he added.

Plenty women have reported assaults, rapes and feeling threatened by Uber drivers. Yesterday, Uber paid about $25 million as part of an agreement with prosecutors for misleading passengers about the thoroughness of its background checks.

Regarding this, Pelletz told TechCrunch his ride-sharing service will be safer thanks to more stringent background checks and additional procedures to ensure riders are suitable to be part of their drivers.